Beth Moore Revelation Bible Study

Last Sunday there was an announcement in our Sunday School class that a group of men would be doing the same Beth Moore study of Revelation that their wives were beginning this week. I decided that I wanted to join any group of men in my church that was interested in studying the Bible and forked over the $10 for my study booklet. The first session was fast-paced and I can tell she is really trying to cram as much information as possible into the lessons. The first one lasted 80 minutes and we had about five minutes of discussion afterwards.

I learned a lot about Revelation from the first lesson, and Beth Moore repeatedly goes back to the commentaries and some of the Greek text for her exposition. I am pretty impressed with the nuance that she puts into her teaching as I don’t normally get this kind of detail from a sermon or even a Bible study, usually. The pastor’s wife mentioned on Sunday that she has been praying for the men’s Bible Study group to start back up again (ever since it stopped). At the end of the final eleventh session I plan to ask the group if anyone wants to do a new study and basically restart the men’s Bible Study group.

Incidentally, there was only one thing that I didn’t like about Beth Moore’s lesson (besides being referred to as “sister” and “girlfriend” repeatedly). At one point she mentions that the NKJV uses a word that isn’t found in the other translations and that is the term “signified” in Rev 1:1. Her reason was that “signified’ means “to make known by a sign” and that this sets the tone for the entire Revelation. I agree with her that it does set the tone, but her persistent reference to how accurate the NKJV was in this verse was very disappointing. For one, the KJV also uses the term “signify” and the NKJV is just a revision of it. For those of you that don’t already know, the NKJV is my least favorite of all translations and I don’t recommend it to anyone. Use the KJV, RSV, NRSV, or ESV but not the NKJV… Anyways, Beth Moore is using the NIV for this study and she pointed out that the NKJV got it right here and the NIV left out this critical word. I was following along in the (T)NIV and in this specific passage it uses the phrase “made it known” which is basically the definition she gives for “signified” Ugh. I don’t know why she spent several minutes on this, especially when the NIV still conveys the correct meaning. Fortunately this was the only dumb part of the lesson, though it didn’t help her that she was extolling the virtues of my least favorite English translation, and she was wrong to boot.

On a final note, my father really enjoys studying Biblical prophecy and especially Revelation. When I was visiting my mom in the hospital last week I took the opportunity to swing by their house and borrow a handful of my dad’s commentaries on the book. I now have print copies of Osborne, Smalley, Mounce (2nd), Boxall, Witherington, and Ladd on Revelation as well as Barrett on 1 Cor. since I’m studying that as well. I also have access to Osborne, Aune and Beale on Logos. My wife and I are planning to continue our study of 1 Cor. as well as going over the Revelation material together. It is quite enjoyable spending time together in scripture, and going through Bible Study booklets together seems to be the best method for us to study together. I will try to report back with how things go, as it’s a fresh new time of Bible Study for me right now.

I liked one of her books but she’s almost as bad as Rick Warren in handling Scripture by taking verses out of context or using a verse for an idea she has. She’s also involved with a contemplative prayer group of people which is pretty disturbing. My wife went through one of her studies and I almost wrote a post to warn people about this kind of stuff, using examples from the study itself. But that’s not really what my blog is about. She’s not all bad–just has some funky stuff going on.
Jeff

Beth Moore is a mixed bag in my opinion. Some of her studies are great (Revelation and John as I remember were especially good) and others are just so-so. Although by the time John was finished, I thought it could have been done in fewer sessions. While I think she gets some things spot-on, at other times she makes connections that are just bizarre. Wish I could think of a specific one now, but her tabernacle work comes to mind.

I find it sad that the only comments are so negative regarding how GOd is using Beth Moore is her service to Him. What critical minds and hearts we have as humans and oh how our Lord God would want us to sing His praises when His followers step out to teach sound doctrine and who love the Lord so much that they are willing to “take” such criticism.
I have been through almost all of her studies, have learned a great deal from each one of them, life changing, soul searching and “transforming” is what she gives to those with open hearts. She reaches and touches thousands of lost souls with nothing but the TRUTH about our Lord and Savior. I look forward to the day when christians will stop criticizing others and learn to see the blessings and talents God brings into His Kingdom through his fallen and redeemed children. Is one perfect? Haevn’t found one yet, but goodness when you find someone who loves God and is humble in spirit and seeks to spread the Gospel, who in the world are we to criticize. NOt all teachers are meant to teach all people. THe apostles taught different people in different ways and yet always brought them to the Truth of Jesus Christ being our Lord. I’m not a scholar, just an ordinary women who loves to learn from the teachers who God has chosen to teach with such passion and priviledge acknoweldged that it brings out their best character to reach into so many different hearts and minds. Our men/women study did three of her studies and the men found it both a joy to learn from one who isn’t boring but is real, and humorous about how real life is today.
Praise the Lord for teachers such as Beth Moore and other women who have truly stepped forward into the arena of very critical people! May God protect their hearts from the “christians” who must find something to criticize in so many ways.

It never ceases to amaze me how we Christians love to attach each other. I have followed Beth’s teaching for many years, along with other teachers. What I like about her, is that she always reminds you as a listener to search out and find other scholars and read their material. She always reminds us that she is not the one with all the answers. In this present age, and the events around the world I am startled with the fact that so many people are not digging into the word for themselves. So here we find one woman who invites us to dig into God’s word and find out what his word says to each of us personally, and she is attacked. You don’t have to like her or even listen to her; but if the only reason that you are listening to her teaching is to find fault with her, that speaks allot about your character. She is always open to dialogues concerning her speaking; she is honest, and gives God all the Glory. We all need to give prayerful thought to what we let come out of our mouths, and to whom we are putting down. Beth is one of many incredible speakers that we have at our finger tips. We should be thankful for the opportunity we have in this country to meet together and study His word. Pray for each other, and for those who are in leadership. Pray against the attacks of the enemy on our leaders.

Nobody is denying her sincerity, love, devotion, care, etc. Nobody is denying that people learn from the Bible as taught by her. But I wish she would just follow some basic rules of Bible interpretation and how much better of a teacher she would be! I think she’s gotten better. She’s also into the contemplative prayer movement which is disturbing but I don’t know if she’s really teaching that. Discernment is important or we’re not going to be able to know who the false teachers are when they come along. I will always stand up for the right interpretation of God’s word. It and God deserve it, and I know you agree with that last part.
Jeff

I’m sorry you feel the comments are so negative, I don’t get that overall impression after rereading them all. I am sure that Beth Moore has been a great teacher to many thousands of people.

After having a few months to reflect on my first study using her materials I can say her teaching simply isn’t for me. Mostly this is due to the depth of the content in her teaching and also because her style is so heavily geared towards women specifically.

Thanks for visiting and leaving your comments, I appreciate them.

@ Jeff

I can’t comment towards Beth Moore’s other teachings, as my only interaction with her was for Revelation. Hope you are well.

I agree with “Dee Tomlinson ”
every one should be Thankful to our Lord God ( WHO is in Control Let’s not forget)..for our Good teachers…(Beth Moore)
And remember when yous talk like that…yous are TALKING ABOUT GOD…HE is in us…we are in Him…He is living in Us..He is in Control…God states…in His word NOT to gossip….There is a fine line between using the – standing up for the right interpretation .. and gossip…This is why we have The Holy Spirit to guide us through our journey to understand the truth…Cutting some one down..is NOT interpreting …. Be careful..be very careful..
Praise Jesus…

Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment. I hope that you weren’t left with the impression that we were gossiping about or cutting down the ministry of Beth Moore. I know that Dee left with a similar impression and for that I am sorry. After re-reading my original post and the comments I still stand by them. I hope that my thoughts can be accepted as a critical opinion and nothing more or less than that.

Can someone please direct me to a Solid Translation of God’s Word…I have tried, NKJV, NIV (which leaves the blood out of key verses), the NASB and even the HCSB. I am just trying to seek a good, easy to understand translation that doesn’t try to sway me to the publisher’s way of thinking. Any thoughts? Thanks.

You could try God’s Word (that’s the name). Also called God’s Word for the Nations but not sure if they use the last part anymore. It’s similar to the NLT but a bit more on the literal side. Also the REB, but that can’t be found online anywhere, you’d have to buy one. Revised English Bible, as in England. I love it. Have you tried NRSV?
Jeff

In my opinion the NIV and HCSB are the easiest to understand and most widely available. Other good translations are the ESV, NRSV, NASB, and NET bibles. Translations that I enjoy but wouldn’t recommend over the others above are the NJB, REB, and NLT.

Personally I use the NIV the most, followed by the ESV, then the NLT. I’m not sure what you mean about the NIV leaving out the “blood” in key verses, it’s the best English translation in my opinion. Hopefully you aren’t being influenced by fear mongers and the like. God bless.

I have read these posts. My wife is attending the Beth Moore study on Revelation. I was told that she said the KJB is not a good translation. Anyway, my point i sthat these new so-called modern translations are not to be relied upon. They use the vatican scriptures and not the “received text” as the KJV uses. You can never be wrong using the KVB but you can be wrong using most of these other versions out there. You need to do a research on the modern translations as you will find they are of the “New Age Movement” and are tools to take away God’s intended word for mankind. I don’t mean to sound mean spirited but our churches are in decline and I believe that turning our back on the King James Bible is partly to blame. Preachers have little conviction and many are just “hirelings” that only want a pulpit, parsonage and paycheck. Use the KJV and Strongs Concordance and you can pretty well have a good Bible study. One other point: If your spouse wrote you a love letter would you want someone else to rewrite the letter and hand it to you?

Thank you for commenting Mike. Your comment borders on the verge of entering into the KJV-only heresies, so I would caution you to consider your position on other translations. There are plenty of other places on the web where people can look into modern heresies, so I won’t elaborate here in a lowly comment box.

The KJV is a masterpiece, but any claims that it is the only way to study the Bible are hazardous for your spiritual health. I do agree with you that the KJV and a Strongs are a nice study combination, I have done such myself in the past.

However, my main disagreement with your comment is in regards to the other fine translations that we are all blessed with. There are only a few translations that should be avoided, and they are used by denominations that are already widely regarded as heretical by the rest (JW, Mormon).

As a Ph. D. student in biblical studies who has studied Revelation and eschatology over the last several years, I always cringe when I hear the untrained trying to train others in the word, especially Revelation. After all, this is where we got dispensationalism from. Fortunately, God uses many of these men and women and keeps them from going too far ‘off the deep end.’ I appreciate Moore for what she does, but if we really want to learn as Christians, then we need to learn from those who know and have studied. It is ok to listen to Moore’s teaching on Revelation, but be aware that there are great sources to check her words against like Bauckham, Beale, Osborne, etc.

thejesuseffect: people will accuse you of being high minded and in a scholarly ivory tower, but it’s great that you say for them to check her teaching, instead of dismissing it (like I would). BTW there is also Mounce. If someone wants something more popular oriented, I can highly recommend Keener’s NIVAC commentary/exposition. I’m Reformed and he’s Pentecostal, but it was one of the best commentaries I read, and I read one for each NT book plus a few OT. He answered every question I had and cleared up a lot of stuff for me. I wouldn’t trust Beth Moore with much of anything, but if people would take the time to look things up, they would learn a whole lot (about Revelation) by being like a Berean about it. Very nice comment.
Jeff

Thank you for commenting. Unfortunately life is too busy to allow me to blog these days. As for Beth Moore and Revelation, the average Christian in America is never going to read a commentary about a book of the Bible, they will look to leaders for understanding. So even though I agree with both of your comments, the reality is that Beth Moore will have a larger impact on Americans than any commentary ever will. In my experience, most Christians struggle to even read the Bible, commentaries are almost unheard of, and to actually read one is rarer still. For this reason I think it is important for a pastor to have Bible school or seminary training, because they have so much clout, people assume they know what they are talking about. Anyways, thanks again.

Just a thought as I stumbled on this post. Seems like a lot of criticism that you all disagree with some of her teachings or connections. Perhaps God just is not revealing this to you at this time! Just sayin.

As I am not as Bible scholar, but an educated woman (sorry men), I do have my qualms with those who only focus on the KJV. My son and daughter-in-law are in a small church that is only KJV. I don’t know what he is thinking. As I understand, it is the scrolls that the KJV were translated from, that were inspired by God. King James was a horrible ruler. The monks who transcribed the KJV where under threat for their lives to make it pleasing to the king. Some words were not transcribed accurately. It is as masterpiece. It is God’s word. But there does need to be discernment as to the events of the day. With that said, the end will not come until God’s word is known to everyone. That is translating it to everyone. We are to spread His word. We can not do this without translating His word in every language and making it understandable to everyone. Not all words are translatable. Even in English, the KJV is difficult to understand by those less educated, most of the general public read on a third to fifth grade level. For people to realistically think the KJV is the only version God has blessed is putting limits on God, Himself. After all, through God all things are possible. His blessings are limitless. Unless you don’t believe what’s in the Bible in the first place.

While I cannot disagree with you on much of your comments I do take issue when God’s Word is mishandled. The newer versions of the Bible leave a lot to be desired. You must not change God’s Word just to make it easier to read. Most newer versions, if not all, leave out scriptures and/or use words to change the meaning altogether. They also make it harder to understand. You cannot improve on the beauty of the KJV. The newer versions are too watered down. Our churches are falling apart and have been since preachers have abandoned the KJV.

Let’s suffice to say that I disagree with you on one point Mike. I believe the problems with the modern church have nothing to do with which version of the Bible is being used. I wholeheartedly agree with you on the beauty of the KJV language. It has a special place in English and can never be replaced in that regard. I still don’t recommend it as a sole resource for modern day study for the reasons mentioned above.

Thanks for our input Nathan. The reason I say that is because one of the things that the NWO crowd, Bilderbergs etc., want to do to bring down this country is through evangelical Christians. To do this they back the new versions of the Bib le as well as much of the new style of music and worship services. The plans are to do away with denominational names on the church building. Take away the cross, do away with the altar and introduce rock type music. If you study and search out the Builderberg sites you should be able to find this info.l